Their study showed the Massachusetts Department of Transportation considers 3.7 crashes per million vehicle miles traveled the state average.

The data used was over a 22-year period from Swansea police between Jan. 1, 1994, and Oct. 14, 2015 — when an historic house on Main Street was struck by a distracted driver after midnight — where this stretch of Main Street showed 4.21 crashes a year or 3.35 crashes per MVMT.

That’s under the state 3.7 MVMT average, and when computed for a recent three-year period, Jan. 1, 2014, through Dec. 31, 2016, the MVMT dropped to 2.12 for the eight segmented crashes in those years, Skaarup said.

In his firm’s safety and improvements study, their aim was to review and evaluate existing conditions in both directions on this .43 miles of Main Street that includes the Town Hall, the public library, a church, fire station and the junior high school.

A day care center and an elementary school are within close walking distance.

At their last Board of Selectmen meeting, Skaarup told about 15 area residents and several town officials those initial statistics might cause this engineer to conclude: “They don’t have a problem out there.”

Figures were similar in both directions on Main Street, with 8,818 going eastbound and 7,153 going westbound.

The eastbound “85th percentile daytime speed” was 28 mph, or 3 mph within the speed limit; westbound the 32 mph was within 7 miles of the 25 mph limit within the village.

Skaarup said their new period data concurred with findings by Swansea accident reconstruction expert Police Sgt. Richard Roussel’s findings “that the segment crashes that do occur on Main Street typically occur near or within the reverse curve section in the middle of the project limits,” just east of the junior high school.

In four crashes there, in both directions, over that period, one was due to icy roads, one a motorist falling asleep, one alleged due to brake failure and the other not determined because the driver tried to flee the scene, says the detailed report.

Skaarup said they concluded the S-curves are “too short” to easily navigate, westbound drivers heading to work in the mornings go too fast, this roadway areas is in mediocre condition and sidewalks are broken along part of the south side that draws many pedestrians.

With graphic drawings and charts, he pulled out his “tool box” of traffic calming proposals during a 90-minute presentation and discussion that drew many comments and questions.

Among points those Main Street area residents made were that most of the homes, from the 18th and 19th century, are within 1½ car lengths of the road and they perceive truck traffic increasing, so there is little room for error. The houses hit and continuing dangers are proof.

On one point, the study showed 97 percent were driving motor vehicles including SUVs and small pickups, just 2 percent trucks and 1 percent riding non-motorized vehicles, Skaarup said.

Colin Durette, who lives with his wife and school-age child at 96 Main St., and parks his vehicle in front of his house to prevent it from being hit again, referenced the 85 percentile speed guideline.

Perry Williams, a father attending with his wife, who lives on the other side at 125 Main St., recalled the scenes about two years ago when another car flipped over and hit a house during the school day.

Skaarup referenced three “primary” recommendations initially. He said they were being made by targeting “what can we reasonably put in?” including what’s affordable to install and maintain.

With input from Selectmen Vice Chairman Steven Kitchin, he and Chairman Derek Heim voted to immediately support five of eight recommendations listed, mostly to enhance visibility, including “reverse curve” 3-by-3 foot signs in both directions with reflective delineators on utility poles; adding arrows to make visibility more prominent at the Ledge Road crosswalk and replacing the small signs with larger ones; updating crosswalk striping to a vertical piano key style to enhance visibility; tree trimming at the Elm Street approach so foliage does not obscure the stop sign from the best distance.

Selectmen and Town Administrator John McAuliffe agreed they could implement those changes without major expenditures or obstacles. Some re-striping of Main Street likely will be needed.

Other primary recommendations that drew support but selectmen did not yet vote included replacing missing sidewalk on the south side of Main Street that would be covered under Chapter 90 funding, installing “speed tables” to slow traffic and adding a three-way stop at the Elm Street intersection.

Speed "tables" differ from speed “bumps” because they’re longer and flat topped, with a length of about 20 feet. They’d reduce average traffic speed 2 to 3 mph, putting the eastbound and westbound traffic Skaarup referenced into the 26 and 30 mph ranges, he said.

It will require funding and additional discussion with the full board, Heim said.

Fire Chief Eric Hajder and Police Chief George Arruda weighed in on some of the ideas. Hajder said he’d have concerns with “speed bumps” that would drastically slow down fire apparatus and responding personnel. William Anderson, the new DPW superintendent, also said he disliked speed bumps here.

A decision on a three-way stop sign would require a public hearing and funding. Arruda said he'd support that and did not see a problem with queuing on Main Street.

Williams raised questions over the town’s culpability for not taking necessary measures and whether other options had not been thought of. The report also listed secondary recommendations.

“I could spend $1 billion and someone could still get killed,” Skaarup said evenly, drawing acknowledgement from residents.

“These are reasonable measures that should bring the speed down,” he said.

The report's cost was approximately $22,000, although officials are optimistic the cost could be covered by Chapter 90 state reimbursements, Kitchin said.

Durette said they have had frustrations waiting three years for additional actions since some speed signs and pedestrian walkway cones were added. He told Skaarup “I like your recommendations” and called the study “fantastic.”

Email Michael Holtzman at mholtzman@heraldnews.com or call him at 508-676-2573.

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